Angry traditional leaders form breakaway group after meeting
The institution of traditional leadership has been thrown into turmoil with an announcement by angry Eastern Cape headmen and women that they were breaking from both Contralesa and the provincial House of Traditional Leaders to form their own forum.
They accuse Contralesa, the ECHTL and the government of sidelining them, even from capacity-building programmes, on Friday.
ECHTL chair Nkosi Mwelo Nonkonyana, who also serves as Contralesa provincial chair, said they were disappointed at the decision.
About 100 headmen and women attended a meeting in the Mthatha Town Hall on Friday.
One headman, Zwelithobile Mtirara, said they had a problem with the institution of traditional leadership in the province. “There are those who are called senior traditional leaders and others are referred to as headmen and headwomen,” he said. “But we feel discriminated against [as headmen and women] because we don’t participate in the kings’ council, the house of traditional leaders, at provincial and national levels. “There are summits that are called but we don’t participate. We are saying we are going to form our own forum that will represent our needs.”
Mtirara said the forum was not a political formation.
He said they had set up a task team late last year which looked at some pieces of legislation pertaining to their standing in traditional leadership spectrum.
He claimed last year headmen and women had been shunned and not invited to a traditional leadership summit called by government at Mpekweni Sun in Port Alfred, while the former were not even considered for a programme run by University of Fort Hare to educate traditional leaders.
Only those considered senior traditional leaders [chiefs] were included in that programme.
“We don’t want anything to do with Contralesa,” said Mtirara.
Another headman Ndumiso Lutuka from Mhlontlo, said although they had deployed some of their people to the ECHTL, they felt their representatives had failed to address their needs.
“The frustration is that the house is supposed to advise government on legislation but it seems it has become an ally of the state at our expense,” said Lutuka.
Nkosikazi Noluntu Dalindyelure bo said they wanted government to review legislation passed which prohibits headmen and women from taking part in the House of Traditional Leaders.
Nonkonyana said although they were disappointed they would not stand in anyone’s way.
“It’s a few who are trying to others to leave Contralesa so that they can take their positions.”
Nonkonyana dismissed some of their claims, saying it was Contralesa that had fought for headmen and women to be part of municipal councils, but said they did not have a problem with the review of the law as per their wishes.
He also stressed that the UFH programme had encountered budgetary constraints and it had been agreed senior traditional leaders would be considered first although some of them had already been incorporated into the programme.
“Even when government issued cars, we said let’s start with kings. We as chiefs, don’t have those cars and are still waiting.”
Co-operative governance & traditional affairs spokesperson Mamkeli Ngam said the government treated traditional leaders equally.
He said it was difficult for his department to invite everybody to their events due to budgetary constraints.
There are summits that are called but we don’t participate
Zwelithobile Mtirara
Headman